'Lo and behold your mother is drinking againThis might be the coldest winter since records beganYou were alone and steady with wintry calmLeading the children softly across the fold

In the morning you march your sisters like soldiers to school'Cause lo and behold your father has drunk quite a fewYou were alone and steady with wintry calmSomewhere inside the fire of your youth went dark

But you swear blind there is no weight in the water pailThere's no guiding light arcing a line to BethlehemAnd you say 'my love, you take the cards that you're dealt'And when it's dark outside, you light the fire yourself

Darling when the ice caps meltWhen the devils in the bible beltDon't you cower in your bedI'll be at the five-four-fiveYou can meet me at the railway lineDon't look so staid

'Cause we've been through worse than this before we could talk

And the trick of it is, don't be afraid anymoreOh, the trick of it is, don't be afraid anymore